Forums / Comparative Religion / What is a Sufi?

I've heard about them and occasionally read a little about them but I'm still a bit confused.

What is a Sufi and are they considered muslims?

Dear Maggie

Hope you are well. I am posting a topic I have already posted on my blog on this subject so you can see what scholars think and know of sufism.

 

 
We begin with the Name of Allaah

Sufism is a blend of various thoughts and philosophies. By intermingling a few traces of Islamic teachings with it, the Sufi thinkers attempted to sanctify their doctrines and demonstrate its conformity to Islam

 

Greek philosophy, and in particular the teachings of Neo-Platonists, have left an indelible mark on many aspects of Sufism. This came about as a result of the translation of Greek philosophical works into Arabic during the third Islamic century. Greek pantheism became an integral part of Sufi doctrine.

 

Manicheanism is also one of the mainstreams of Sufism. N. Fatemi observed: "It is interesting how near to Manichean ideas the Sufis are, remembering that both Manicheanism and Sufism were nurtured in Persia.

 

Vedanta, the chief Hindu philosophy, which is an example of pantheism in its metaphysical strictness, also had a great impact on Sufism following the conquest of Sindh by Muhammad b. Qasim in the second century A.H.

 

Sufi occultism, with its host of philosophical and theosophical doctrines, is beyond doubt antithetical to Islam. Islam proclaims that the matchless entity and essence of Allah is totally different from that of His slaves, i.e., man. Sufis, on the contrary, subscribe to the belief that matter, man and God form in effect one single entity and essence.

 

Ibn Arabi's doctrine of pantheism was a combination of Manichean, Gnostic, Neo-Platonic, Vedantic and Christian philosophies and speculations, which he tried vainly to give an Islamic sanction by relating it to Prophetic traditions.

 

"Of his main theme," R.W.J. Austin wrote, "the one that predominates over the rest and to which they are subordinate in the oneness of being (wihdat al-wujood). The concept of the Oneness of Being is all-embracing one, in that all Ibn al-Arabi's other concepts are but facets of it, just as he would say that all distinction, difference and conflict are but apparent of a single and unique reality, the 'seamless garment' of Being, whose reality underlies all derivatives being and its experience."

 

Ahlu al-Sunnah wa al-Jama'ah, on the other hand, are agreed that Allah is One Alone, qualified with all the attributes wherewith He has qualified Himself and named with all names whereby He has named Himself, without resembling creation in any respect; that His essence does not resemble the essences of His creatures nor His attributes resemble theirs. Allah the Supreme says: which means, "There is nothing like unto Him; He is the Al-Hearing, the All-Seeing."

 

Muhiyddin Ibn Arabi, one of the leading authorities on Sufi mysticism, who captured the imagination and the adulation of Sufis around the world, was born in the year 560 A.H. (1165 A.D.), and pursued the study of the occult and the metaphysical doctrines of the Sufis."Such learning and accompanying practices," R.J. Austin wrote, "often led Ibn Arabi, even while he was still young man in Seville, to spend long hours in the cemeteries communing with the spirits of the dead."(!)

 

He talked about his "cemetry revelations" as matters of fact, and managed to compile a massive compendium on Sufism entitled Al-Futoohat Al-Mekkiyyah (the Meccan Revelations). Of this, Ibn Arabi wrote, "Some works I wrote at the command of God sent to me in sleep, or through mystical revelations."(!)

 

The other striking impression that Ibn Arabi wanted to leave on the readers of his Meccan Revelation is that he, too, as a spiritual and mystical figure, experienced the heaviness of revelation, resembling that of the Prophet (s.a.w.s). He noted that sometimes the pressure of mystical revelation was so strong that he felt compelled to finish a work before taking a rest.

 

Allah the Exalted particularly condemns such claimants, saying: which means,"And who is more disbelieving than he who forges a lie against Allah, or says, 'It has been revealed to me,' when nothing has been revealed to him, or who says, 'I will send down the like of which Allah has sent down.'"

 

According to the Qur'an, revelation is of two kinds. The first is the revelation that came from Allah to His Prophets and Messenger through an angel, such as Jibreel (Gabriel). This cam to an end with the death of the Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w). The second is Satanic communication, of which Allah says: which means,"Shall I inform you on whom the Satans descends, on every habitual liar and sinner."

 

Muslims believe that the Prophet (s.a.w.s) is the last of the Prophets, with whom the line of Prophethood is closed. Therefore, anyone who claims to be a prophet or a recipient of Divine revelation is an imposter and an heretic. And besides, it sounds quite eerie for a young man to spend long hours in cemetries "communing with the spirits of the dead." The Prophet (s.a.w.s) was told by Allah: meaning, "And you cannot make those who are in graves to hear. "Indeed, communion of this nature could very well lead to a theory such as pantheism.

 

In order to substantiate his theosophical and pantheistic doctrine and make it appear Islamic, Ibn Arabi resorted to ta'weel, which is giving far-fetched interpretations to selected verses of the Qur'an or Prophetic traditions from the Sunnah, changing their apparent meaning to one which falls in line with his beliefs, a technique which was used before him by all the 'Batini' or secretive sects that strayed away from the path of Islam. He referred to Almighty Allah as "Creator-Creature," and took pains to present the Divine Being in a theosophical context, and to convince his readers that Allah's creation springs from nothing other than His "fundamental being."

 

Thus, the god that Ibn Arabi believed in is, in reality, all the elements that constitute the universe: human, animal and every other existing thing. As an example he depicted his own master, as a divine reality. And to make sure his readers did not misconstrue his heresy, he further emphasized: "In relation to existence, He (God) is the very essence of existing things. Thus in a certain sense, relative beings are elevated in themselves, since in truth they are none other than He who bears the name Abu Said al-Kharraz."

 

From this heretical concept of Allah, one may deduce without limit, principles which contradict the prescripts and fundamental tenets and creeds evident in the Qur'an and the Sunnah. For example, man, as alleged by "Son of Plato," is nothing less than God Himself, and since Fir'awn (Pharaoh) was a man, his declaration of being a god would have been true according to Ibn Arabi's pantheistic doctrine.

 

Furthermore, if nothing exists in reality but God, then every animal, regardless of its family, is in reality god also. And since all existing things have one essence, wine is nothing but water, and every forbidden (haram) thing is lawful or (halal).

 

There can never be more abhorent heretical belief than pantheism. Allah the Exalted is far removed from what Ibn Arabi and his followers ascribe to Him. Allah says: which means, "There is none like unto Him; He is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing ."And it does not befit believers to make far-fetched interpretations of the essence of Allah or His attributes. True Muslims accept them as they are given in the Qur'an or in the authentic traditions of the Prophet (s.a.w.s).

 

The above verse is an informative statement which connotes a command from Allah to the believers not to impute to Him any attribute or name other than those given to Him by Himself or by His Messenger Muhammad (s.a.w.s) in authentic traditions. Nor are they allowed to subject Allah to similitudes or examples. There is a clear warning in Allah's word: which means, "So strike not similitudes for Allah, surely Allah knows and you know not."

 

The Sufis, like their masters, would have us believe that their doctrines originated in the Qur'ânic verses. They interpret certain verses freely, both linguistically and theologically, to corroborate their beliefs and give them Qur'ânic sanction. Besides giving Qur'ânic verses different interpretations, they also reduce them to symbols and codes and juxtapose them in a metaphysical perspective. To give an example of the seriousness of this perversion of language by the Sufis, the following verse is cited: which signifies, "O mankind, reverence your Lord Who Created you from a single person, and created there from his (female) mate, and from them both (Adam and Eve) scattered countless men and women."

 

From these straightforward words, one can easily understand that Allah created Adam first, and, according to numerous verses, He fashioned him from earthly matter, and subsequently he created Eve from one of Adam's ribs, as stated in the authentic traditions. In an attempt to substantiate his pantheistic beliefs, Ibn Arabi gave the above verse the following meaning: "From him (Adam) came forth the mate and child, who all came from the 'Universal Nature,' that is, God, Who is manisfested in her (Nature's) many forms in the form of Adam, in the form of Eve and in the form of the progeny. "The Divine element, according to him, inhabits every being. "Glory be to God," Ibn Arabi exclaimed, "Who created things, being Himself their essence."

 

for more information you can visit www.allaahuakbar.net and read on this subject.

 

Im a newbie here and just reading some of these responses scares the hell out of me. PLEASE all you ignoramus Muslims, DO NOT answer a question unless you know for SURE what you are saying. Whats this BULL about Sufis being a blend, smoking pot chopping and changing deen??? They are Muslims , the "Sufis" who are the twirling dervish kind have deviated a little as twirling around is not thikr, if the Prophet (SAW) or sahaba did not make thikr this way then it is Bidah. But the "sufis" who are on the path of tassawuf are true Muslims and not deviaters. Again DO NOT respond to things you are unsure of, making one false statement on Islam can be on the border of KUFR!!!!! SHEEESH!

salaam, i recently took tariqa, but I prayed Istikharah before I went to tariqa and Allah guided me to it....the Tariqa im involved in is mainly thikr, everything is Qur'an and Sunnah, same 5 pillars, u cant be Sufi without being a regular Muslim...nothing has changed since I became Sufi, I just concentrate on doing thikr on top of the regular obligations.....

Salam,
everyone who says the testimony: LA ILAHA ILLA ALLAH, MUHAMMED RASOOL ALLAH... is a muslim (it is simple like that)...
now, the stuff about deviations, not following Sunnah...! it is for you to seek from Sufi Authentic books, or their respected scholars...
you've became a muslim after saying the shahada...
ask yourself what is Islam? and how do you know Islam..?
you know Islam by five things (and any other religion too is known by these):
1.Allah: the god that this religion worships...
2.Prophet: the messenger who calls for this religion...
3.Koran: the book of this religion, what it says...
4.Seerah: the history of the prophet, how he declared his religion, and who invited to this (religion)...
5.Sahaba: the persons (the followers) of this religion, i.e. the persons graduated from the school of this religion...
this is the methodology in knowing and understanding any religion...
...
for your question again:
consider sufism (as an assumption) a religion and seek these five parameters, by reading there books, or by asking their scholars.. and compare the results with Islam, as you know it from the authentic books...
...
again, every one who says the shahada is a muslim, (and Islam is different than muslims) so search which kind of muslim you want to be...?! 

Are you trying to be funny?

Asalaamu alaikum uh I posted like five posts on this topic but if you need I can post something here 2.I have a question where do you people get the ansers you post

07 - Sufism Is Self-Purification

071-> Hadith of the Prophet on the heart:


“... truly in the body there is a morsel of flesh which, if it be whole, all the body is whole and which, if it be diseased, all of it is diseased. Truly it is the heart.” (narrated by Bukhari and Muslim)
072-> The process of self-purification means that a muslim undertakes to rid himself of repellant characteristics and acquire praiseworthy ones, so that he perfects his worship of his Lord and attains His nearness.

073-> The Sufi is that muslim whose inner and outer behaviour are in harmony with the Shari`ah (Divine Law), so that he realizes (thqq*; tahqîq) his iman, islam and ihsan.

 

08 - Famous Quotes On Sufism

081-> Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal said about the Sufis: “I don't know people better than them.” Someone said to him: "They listen to music and they reach states of ecstasy." He said: “Do you prevent them from enjoying an hour with Allah?”

082-> Imam al- Shafi`i said: “Be both a faqih and a sufi: do not be only one of them without the other! Verily, by Allah's truth, I am advising you sincerely. [L]

083-> Imam Malik said: “He who practices tasawwuf without learning Sacred Law corrupts his faith, while he who learns Sacred Law without practicing tasawwuf corrupts himself. Only he who combines the two proves true.”

For those who say that sufis are correct, I would ask them to post something from Quran and sunnah which bears the word tassawuuf and says it is correct.

Islam was completed at the time of prophet pbuh. Why people feel that them adding something and painting it with brush of islam will make it acceptable?

 This day, I have perfected your religion for you, completed My Favour upon you, and have chosen for you Islām as your religion. Quran 5.3

 

We were named muslims, not sufis or anything else.

 

May Allah guide us all.

Not really...If one learns about the different sects and compares them to the Qur'an and Sunnah they won't find confusion...imo.  
It sounds like the early sufis weren't like the sufis of today...with those statements coming from those great imams.  But that is the same case as the shia.  If the Qur'an and Sunnah say 'a' and sufism says 'b' leave the sufism.  And that goes for any of the 73 sects that make up the muslim ummah.  As an nabi SAWS said, only 1 of these 73 sects will be upon the haqq...the rest in the fire.  The haqq is as clear as day when placed next to the Qur'an and Sunnah.So my advise is to study the sects and see what they have to say, look at their evidences,compare this speech to the Qur'an and Sunnah.  If they can hold water fine, but they can't move on.  Oh and someone's opinion is just that, an opinion.  Don't risk going to the hellfire over an opinion.

Sufism is often described as an inner dimension of Islam, an idea that is developed more fully in the context of the famous Hadith of Gabriel which identifies three such dimensions. It states:

"Umar said: One day when we were sitting with the Messenger of God there came unto us a man whose clothes were of exceeding whiteness and whose hair was of exceeding blackness, nor were there any signs of travel upon him, although none of us knew him. He sat down knee unto knee opposite the Prophet, upon whose thighs he placed the palms of his hands, saying: 'O Muhammad, tell me what is the surrender (islam)'. The Messenger of God answered him saying: 'The surrender is to testify that there is no god but God and that Muhammad is God's Messenger, to perform the prayer, bestow the alms, fast Ramadan and make, if thou canst, the pilgrimage to the Holy House.' He said: 'Thou has spoken truly,' and we were amazed that having questioned him he should corroborate him. Then he said, 'Tell me what is faith (iman).' He answered: 'To believe in God and His Angels and His Books and His Messengers and the Last Day, and to believe that no good or evil cometh but by His Providence.' 'Thou has spoken truly,' he said, and then: 'Tell me what is excellence (ihsan).' He answered: 'To worship God as if thou sawest Him, for if thou seest Him not, yet seeth He thee.' 'Thou has spoken truly,' he said, and then: 'Tell me of the Hour.' He answered, 'The questioned thereof knoweth no better than the questioner.' He said: 'Then tell me of its signs.' He answered: 'That the slave-girl shall give birth to her mistress; and that those who were but barefoot naked needy herdsmen shall build buildings ever higher and higher.' Then the stranger went away, and I stayed a while after he had gone; and the Prophet said to me: 'O 'Umar, knowest thou the questioner, who he was?' I said: 'God and His Messenger know best.' He said: 'It was Gabriel. He came unto you to teach you your religion"

Sufism may be defined as none other than ihsan as it is described here. It is the fulfillment and culmination of both islam and iman which serve as its foundation. For a more specific definition of what it consists of we may turn to the authority of such an illustrious teacher as Abu Hamid Muhammad al-Ghazali. To paraphrase his words from the autobiographical work "Deliverance from Error", Sufism comprises both intellectual belief and practical activity, the latter of which consists of getting rid of the obstacles in the self and in stripping off its base characteristics and vicious morals, so that the heart may attain to freedom from what is not God and to constant recollection of Him.

There are those in the west such as the followers of Idries Shah and Hazrat Inayat Khan who have taught a kind of universalist mysticism under the name of Sufism, but this is a modern movement and not the manner in which it is traditionally taught or practiced within the Muslim world.

You are welcome to discuss these ideas further at the group Inner Dimensions of Islam

-Wasalaam

 

Sufis are Muslim. Sufism is mysticism. To try to create a personal relationship with Allah. That is the very basic of it...

 

Sufi's will say, "to be drunk with the love of Allah," means to be captured by Allah's love. But to some Muslims they only see the word, "drunk," and therefore believe Sufis are drinking heavily...

 

Sufism is the esoteric part of Islam, it deals with purification of the heart and soul so one can be closer to Allah. Sufism deals with the inside part of Islam much more than the outside part of Islam...

 

Sufism has a language style of its own...